Friday Night Live

Marooned on the workbench, my first steam loco in a long while. I put the coal bunker together for my Ja, and while its the correct size, it doesn't seem to work with the boiler, which is also the correct size.

It seems that I've run into one of those times where I need to toss out the plan and just build something that looks right. I've still got problems in that I cannot work out how to build the front end with the compressor covers.
The main problem i have with a project like this is that sometimes I can't move forward until I have thought out the problem I'm trying to solve. I think I'll just have to force myself to have a go at building something, and worry about getting it right later.

Its about time...

...Someone sent me in a picture of their modeling. And the first prize goes to ECMT for this.
'My version of an F plough van ( or how to butcher an innocent resin kit ). No, don't be fooled by the deceptive appearances - this ISN'T an RP model. The basis is a Cross Creek 30 ft F van. These don't come with a roof, couplers, or bogies. I added bits of styrene for the plough, a piece of rimu half round moulding for the roof, bits of wire from a wire brush for handrails. I would have used the brush wire for the verandah railings, but it's a sod to solder, so I used brass wire instead. Not as fine but ok. The other bits added were from one of Pat Eade's F kits - bogies, roof ventilators, steps and couplers. The only thing left to do - get a decal set made for the doors. What would I do differently ? Don't try and be clever and make the handrails stand out from the model. I tried that on the main doors, didn't like it and just CA'ed the others directly on. I have 2 done, 2 more to do to create a short work train of 1 F, 2 Yc's, and 1 Nc.'

Oh, and sorry theres no prize. :v)

Heresy I say!

The morning E-mail session has been interesting today. The back and forward has centered around the recent discussions (again) on the NZ120 list, and around the whole RP thing. Basically I think it boils down to a series of factions.
-The experienced/old hands, who have a good/excellent grasp of what it takes to make and sell kits (not necessarily in NZ120).
-The up and comers (and I'll lump idealists in here as well), who seem to quite happily propose grad schemes abut how the future should look, and the cost gets fudged a bit to make it all seen better.
-The rest, who would just like to see someone making models for sale again.

It appears another faction may have congealed this morning. A level of dismay about the estimated cost of the whole RPing process (and the fact that despite the months of discussions, we still have yet to see anything) has lead to some interesting questions being asked, and a possible step back to the good old days.
The smart money at the moment is that a RPed 4 wheeled wagon with couplers etc will set the average Joe back about NZ$20-25. Now this is fine for those of us that want a small shunting layout made popular by the English who seem to be quite happy living in shoe boxes, but if one wants to model a set of 20-25 La's (like the 'stone train' from Otago in the 1980's) it will set you back NZ$400-600. That's a fair chunk of change even for the jet set train photographers from Long Island. Now this contrasts with the good old days where dinosaurs roamed Otaki and wagons were mass produced in basements all over Dunedin and Wellington. I'm informed that peco wagon chassis are NZ$5-7 each (I'd love to know where). For a long rake of wagons that's going to run as a set, the bulky rapido couplers can be glued and modified, and all that's needed are some decent couplers at each end of the set. Now the PECO underframe is not perfect for NZR, but by golly its close enough from 2'. To finish up a cheap top that might not have all the rivets but does look the part, and add in some rudimentary brake gear and you get something like this, for maybe 1/2 the price.
All With cheap resin cast tops by yours truely.


From a mould by the late John Rappard

Not that its not going to be good enough for some, but the rest of us....
(And that was really what the scale was about in the 80's trains dwarfed by the scenery, not as teh main focus of the whole thing. If you are keen on that, then go check out 9mm)
Here's your big chance to actually leave some comments about what the unwashed masses think (well and the washed ones too I suppose). also don't forget I'm still waiting for anyone to send in photo's of their NZ120 models.

I'm carefully locking the doors tonight, as I'm now awaiting a visit from the fine scale inquisition. Slow torture by being forced to make scale sized rivets at the correct scale on a large sheet of brass. Thumbs slowly crushed by micrometers. Maybe even dipped into a vat of low melt solder. hell may well be like that. I just hope that they serve beer.

Another bit of history

Found in a second hand book shop that was closing down. One of only 2 books written in New Zealand about model railway modeling, Steam in Miniature for the princely sum of $6(I did not believe what the prices are like on amazon). The book is about Frank Roberts, the first modeler of new Zealand railways. some of his work with primitive tools is just incredible. For his first loco, a 2 1/2' gauge model of Wa 288, he made a hacksaw from an old table knife by filing the points into the edge. makes a dremel seem almost cheating. One wonders what the old timers would have done with the modern implements that we take for granted. He built a collection of 20 loco's over the course of 20 years. Most are currently on display in Te Papa
(Oh, and the other book is 'little trains of thought' by Merv Smith. I have not counted plan books in this total)

Two for the price of one

Came across some other pictures on the camera tonight, so thought I might as well talk about them. I've been messing around with the track layout for paikakariki loco depot, and I think Its almost OK now.


(cropped together from 2 pictures which don't quite match, but you get the idea.
UPDATE. Darryl has taken pity on me and sorted it out properly))
Of course, the way to do it is full sized, and pushing loco's around to see if its going to a) work and b) look the way I want. An important part of modeling real locations is to choose scenes that you like the look of, then compress then into the space you have while not losing the flavour. It sounds obvious, but....

The general operating plan is that locos arrive, uncouple from the train, then run backwards around the back track to the turntable. This is set up to rotate only between the 2 options, replacing a delicate alignment job with running a stall motor into a hard stop that lines up every time. The loco can then back up to the oil/coaling stage. From there it runs forward into the shed and into the que for the next train back north. It sounds simple, but I think it will probably be a full job on the model just shuffling loco's (and quite honestly it will probably be the one everyone fights for, especially with all those big steam loco's I have yet to build)

And thats the 50

When I started all this, I didn't know if I was going to be able to keep it up for long. So tonight I'm enjoying a Black Mac (I've run out of my own homebrew).
Further to this weeks witterings, here's an early proof of concept model that I knocked up in an afternoon.


A correct wheelbase De underframe built from the bogies of a kato Bo-Bo-Bo electric using the worm drives, and a tenshedo motor from a SPUD power unit thingy. The frames are built up brass held together at each end with PCB. It does run, just not very well, and needs some weight (and the correct bogie side frames as well).

Now if an old luddite like me can do it, surely one of these smart young things can sort out a decent way of doing this.
(And where are the piles of pictures flying in of models everyone else is making? NZ120 only please, though I've seen some very nice pictures today of a 9mm scale Dg. The builder reports that after 15 years in NZ120, 9mm is really quite simple)

More of the same

Where to start tonight. More discussions on the NZ120 list. One idea that's been raised is of selling a 'train set' with a loco, a couple of wagons and a circle of track, all for the princely sum of $350. There is a slight technical hitch with this plan. While admirable, it fails to take into account the (standard?) mark up at model shops, which from experience (admittedly a while ago) is getting towards %50. Suddenly the economics of the situation go through the floor, and you seriously need to find someone who is willing to 'grow the hobby' essentially out of his own pocket.
We then rolled onto locomotives, and it was postulated that a scale mechanism could be built sourced from Australia, with correct sized wheels and axle spacings etc. Again the only technical hiccup was that only one bogie would be powered. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but I remember the bad old days of the 80's, where loco mechanisms were a bit of a joke in N scale. Atlas and kato changed all that, with decent powered locos that ran well. Loco's powered on one bogie were/are pretty much useless for pulling anything, and tend to spend all their time on a back track looking pretty. I can't think of anything that would turn people off the hobby faster.
Well, not overly positive in the last couple of days, I'll have to get back to some modeling won't I